Hoodlum Resistance
by Kurasuko
Summary: Rayman's been gone for over a year, and André has risen a third time and succeeded since. Now, the fate of Rayman's world rests in that of an ex-Hoodlum named Frank. Rated T for some mild violence, alcohol reference, drug reference, and safety.
1. Chapter 1

This story is copyrighted by me 11/19/09

The bright sun shown down on the grass in patches, partially blocked by the canopy of trees above. A lone Hoodlum lay on a hill overlooking the rebuilt base camp in Clearleaf Forest. But this was no ordinary Hoodlum. This was the rogue Hoodlum named…Frank. The Hoodlums weren't creative with their names, and Frank was a rare bright spot in what they chose. So, Frank it was.

Frank sat above the hill overlooking the camp, his gun poised. After Rayman has vanished so mysteriously, André had once again hatched a plan to take over the world. The only difference was that it'd worked this time. There were no heroes to defend the world, now, and Frank, having been kicked out of the Hoodlums, had decided to become "Rayman," thwarting André's nefarious plans at every turn, just like his idol. If he was lucky, André would think Rayman had returned, and would cease his evil scheme, knowing that "Rayman" would foil his plans anyway. That's what Frank was hoping for, anyway. Frank couldn't help but recall how he'd been kicked out of the Hoodlums…

_It was only the 3__rd__ day of the Hoodlums' invasion. Frank, a new recruit, had been stationed within the Clearleaf Forest base camp, guarding the treasury. He was a Hoodmonger Private 1__st__ Class (he never would advance), and was partnered with Schnitzel, a Hoodmonger Soldier, one rank above his. Frank was sitting on a crate when the sound of a gate opening alerted the pair. Schnitzel ran down the hallway where the sound had come from (there were three gates barring the entrance to the treasury down that hallway, but from where the two Hoodlums were, they could only hear the last one), and Frank heard a shot. Schnitzel ran back in, saying in his heavy German accent: "Ze Rayman is he-er! Jou haf to go-o on'(and) tell ze 'ed 'Oodlum zaz (that's) en Ondré's place! Do it! Do it NAUWWGH (now)!" The Shock Rocket (a Hoodlum-made tool like a rocket launcher missile) followed behind, and Schnitzel was no more. Frank obliged, not wanting to be blown up, and crawled through the air-ducts out of the base camp, found a boat, journeyed to the Summit Beyond the Clouds, went into the Hoodlum Base, and told the Head Hoodlum, only to learn that he got fired for disobeying orders and not guarding the Hoodlum treasury in the Clearleaf Forest base camp. After that, Frank went to…well, somewhere, he wasn't quite sure…and basically drunk himself into a comatose state off plum juice. When he awoke (about a month ago), he learned Rayman had vanished and that André had successfully taken over most of the world. So now he was here at Clearleaf Forest, about to—_

A bullet whizzed passed Frank, hitting a nearby tree. When he was lost in his memories, he'd missed his chance, been spotted, and was now in a very bad position.

"Uh oh," was all Frank could think of to say. He got up and started running, and was chased by just about the whole base camp. Numerous shots flew by him, a few hit him, and he staggered. Seeing a tree close enough, Frank grabbed hold, spun around and fired six shots at the lead Hoodlums, all of which hit. Frank was about to cheer when he realized more had appeared. As they fired off shots, Frank leaned back, his arms waving wildly.

_I'm doing it!_ he thought. _I'm dodging every single—_Frank's thoughts were interrupted when a bullet hit him in a certain bad spot. He came up sharply, hands clutching between the left and right sides of his robes (Hoodlums don't really have legs, or any real appendages for that matter, but they can still move and feel like they do), and was promptly hit by several more bullets that weren't really aimed anywhere specific. He was being forced back, more and more, until finally he was knocked off his feet. He flew backwards, and for one instant his body felt wet. Then, he was hit by a sudden burst of light, blinding him temporarily. He was aware that he was falling down fast. Frank opened his eyes to see that he was falling through a large, vertical hallway. On all sides were beautifully designed windows and bright, stainless walls. The entire area looked as if it was never even touched by any creature. As he was falling, Frank tried to discern a world outside the windows, but only bright white light poured from them. He looked, and saw that there were no Hoodlums chasing him.

"That's weird," Frank muttered to himself. He then noticed that the bottomless, beautiful cave he was falling through seemed to be turning horizontally. He was still falling, but Frank could swear that he was now falling _sideways_. Frank then looked up, and saw that he was heading straight for an impossibly small mirror.

"Oh, that's going to hurt."

* * *

Frank felt his body shrink, get the same quick wet sensation, expand again, and slam into a wooden wall. He fell for a second, but then stopped, sitting on…something. Frank opened his eyes and looked around. He was sitting in an outhouse, with a brightly lit candle. He groaned, looking around. There was a closed door to his right, but the only place he could've come out of to land like this would be...

"No way," Frank looked at the small mirror across from him. It was the same size, shape, and had the same frame type and color as the one at the end of that weird…area. Frank touched the mirror, but his hand didn't go through.

"Hey," Frank suddenly looked around. "Where's my blunderbuss?" His self-made gun, which every Hoodlum made at the HQ to use for life, was nowhere to be seen. As if on cue, the blunderbuss rocketed out of the mirror, hitting Frank in the face.

"Now that that's solved," Frank groaned. "It's time to figure out where I am." He pushed open the door.

The Bog of Murk

The outhouse door opened to a rainy, dismal scene. Frank observed where he was. Above, dark, depressing clouds interchanged chaotically in no apparent pattern. Strange creatures flew to and fro in the dreary weather. A flock of unidentifiable birds passed in the distance. A ways ahead was a lone tree in the murky water, which appeared to hold some sort of substance that produced an unusually bright light, like a natural candle. Frank stood up, getting off the toilet seat. He was promptly greeted with an incredible pain, and he fell to the wooden floor of the outhouse.

"This isn't good," he grumbled. "If I'm caught by any Hoodlums now, I'm finished." He got back up gingerly, staring at the landscape in front of him.

"I could hide out here until I'm healed," he suggested to himself. "But if the owner of this outhouse or a Hoodlum finds me before then, it's over." Frank sighed. "Guess I'm going to have to make my way out of here…" He stepped out of the outhouse, closing the door.

Standing out in the rain, Frank noticed two things. One was that he was on a small islet, and more little spits of land were all he saw in the murky ocean around him. The second was that the strange glowing substance on the tree was amber, and that it was a useful light source right now—it was late evening, and it was hard to see. Frank saw that most of the trees in this swamp appeared to have similar amber sacks that could be seen through the wispy fog that hung on all sides of the horizon.

"This water's dirty," Frank said. "But it's not poisonous. I could probably swim out to one of those islets out there and maybe find some help." Most Hoodlums couldn't swim, but Frank and a few others he'd heard of were exceptions. However, as Frank looked at the water, he noticed something move through the muck. In instinct, Frank picked up a rock and tossed it into the water. Instantly a piranha leapt out from the murk and caught the rock, then, before going under, spat it out, seeing as it was not meat.

"Guess that rules out swimming to safety," Frank sighed. He then saw that a combination of islets and toadstools formed a path to a larger bit of land with a giant tree on it, topped by a large mushroom. Frank wasn't sure, but he thought he could see light coming from a hole in between two of the tree's enormous partially exposed roots.

"Worth a try," Frank (painfully) hopped from mushroom to mushroom, islet to islet, until he landed on a walk similar in structure to the one leading to the outhouse. On one side there was a clothesline. Frank looked and saw socks, more socks, and the biggest pair of bloomers he'd ever seen (he hadn't seen many, but, you get the idea).

"…Who lives here?" he wondered. Frank continued along, hopping from the wooden walk to two more mushrooms, then finally onto the island with the tree. He had been right; there was a warm light coming from the neatly paneled and organized hole in the ground. Frank jumped—or fell—down into it, and discovered that he was in a house. Directly in front of him was an enormous cauldron, with a bubbling green substance in side of it. Frank continued through the house, as it was warm and comfortable, and discovered various potions and books in the room. He then saw that there was a hallway in the corner. Deciding to make himself as hidden as possible, Frank continued down the hallway. It lead down a few sets of stairs, and Frank looked around at the numerous shelves, filled with books of mystery and magic, while bugs chattered, scurrying around to crevices to hide from his approach. Finally, a large spiral staircase lead down into a tall room, filled with alchemical tools, books, and an enormous mirror. Frank studied the room carefully, but found no other doors or halls.

"This house is deserted," Frank grumbled. "But it's too small. There's nowhere I can hide, and since there's no one here, I'm not protected very well. Is this it?" Frank dropped to the ground, angry with himself for messing up so soon. He was supposed to be saving the world! Instead, here he was, wounded and trapped in a house under a tree with nowhere to move. Frank turned his head and looked at the room hopelessly. Then he noticed it again. It was filled with alchemical tools, books, and—"an enormous mirror," Frank finished his thought aloud, and a smile crept across his carefully sewn mouth (he is a Hoodlum after all). Frank stood up, his blunderbuss slung across his back, and moved to the mirror. He placed his hand on it, but it felt firm and solid. Frank's smile fell.

"Why isn't it working?" he wondered. He pressed harder. Still nothing. Frustrated, Frank rammed his shoulder into the mirror, pressing in all his weight. His body felt wet for a moment, and then Frank fell.

He got up unhappily, expecting to see the mirror in the room. Instead, he saw that he was inside the hallway again, but this one was different. Fragmented. Outside of it, he saw nothing. Above, he could see a mysterious stream heading somewhere unknown. The hallway had become a tunnel of moving rectangles of light, endlessly spinning, with the occasional flicker of the spotless hallway Frank assumed it should be. Every time it flickered to this, Frank could see a mirror at the end, but when the hallway vanished, so did the mirror. In its place, the spinning rectangles that gradually moved forward would end mysteriously.

"This won't do," Frank said. "I can't time such small increments like that." He then noticed something. Every 5th flicker was longer, and lasted about a minute.

"That I can use," he grinned unconsciously. He positioned himself, and waited. 1…2…3…4…5! Frank darted off immediately, moving as fast as he could toward the mirror. He made a final leap toward it and—the hallway flicked out and Frank realized he'd just jumped into the spot where the rectangles ended.

* * *

The soft, marshy earth cushioned Frank's fall, and he quietly stood up and turned around, expecting to see a mirror behind him. Instead, he saw a small vibrating sphere of light. It split into four teardrop-shaped lights, which spiraled out for a second, then faded away. It had been in front of a small cave, and Frank noted the outside was shaped like a cauldron.

"Well," Frank turned around. "At least I can move about now. So I'm still in the swamp…" He looked onward, and saw that this section was glazed with green fog. It looked like an alien landscape, everything tinged with the sickly green of swamp gas. In the sky, two deep yellow half-moons stared down at the landscape. At first, Frank doubted he was even in the bog at all, but then saw many silhouettes of the amber trees in the distance, their sacs glowing in the alien fog. There was a large tree in front of Frank on a small island, but it had no amber. Instead, there was a light coming from a lantern. Below the lantern was a table with…two Hoodlums playing poker, plum juice bottles at their sides.

"That's not good," Frank looked around a bit more, and saw a Hoodboom on stilts, circling the island. "That's _really_ not good." Desperately searching for a way around this, Frank spotted a row of mushrooms that curved around the island. The Hoodboom had moved to the opposite side of the island, and Frank had his chance. Doing his best to run, he leapt from mushroom to mushroom, praying that one of the Hoodlums didn't look up from his hand in the poker game. Frank had finally reached a wooden walk, and was out of the sight line of all three of the Hoodlums.

*_Clang!_*

Frank looked ahead and saw a Spineroo, a Hoodlum type normally only assigned to prisons. He didn't move for anything, not even the higher ups. The clanging was coming from the two heavy iron balls sewn onto his hands. He could see Frank, and Frank didn't have the firepower to move him. If Frank got too close, the Spineroo would spin violently, dangerously waving the iron balls (hence his name).However, Frank also knew that Spineroos were mute, and wouldn't talk of his appearance. This gave him an idea. Frank rushed toward the Spineroo, which, as anticipated, began to twirl rapidly. Frank saw his chance, and grabbed one of the too iron balls on the Spineroo's hands. It continued swinging, and Frank let go an instant later, and was catapulted off. Thankfully, there was a low cliff

behind the Spineroo, and Frank had to pull out his blunderbuss and stick it in the ground to avoid sliding straight into a cave further along the top of the cliff. Frank pulled his blunderbuss out of the ground and looked around. The cliff had a watch outpost with a sleeping Hoodlum in it. Behind him was the cave he'd almost flew into.

"No other options," Frank told himself. "Time to move." He walked into the cave.

As he exited, Frank noticed that the outside bog was no longer alien looking. It was later in the night, and the green mist had vanished, revealing a calm, purple-tinted sky and swamp. There were many of the amber trees here, and Frank noticed that, other than the glowing amber sacs, they were barren and dead.

"Come to think of it," he recalled. "All the trees here are dead, and most hold that amber." Frank could hear snoring. He looked and saw another Hoodlum outpost, and presumably another sleeping Hoodlum. It was then that Frank's injuries chose to act up.

"Agh!" he groaned, kneeling down. "Guess that slide took more out of me then I thought…" Frank knew he had to continue, and so he took out his blunderbuss, and, using it as a cane, proceeded along the series of islets and up to the outpost and another cave. Sneaking past the sleeping Hoodlum he continued to find a huge group of islands in front of him, ending at the largest outpost in the bog. Frank knew he'd have to act fast, when he moved; the entire area was crawling with Hoodlums. He then saw that the nearest land was to his left, where a crashed boat lay on its side. A hoodlum was moving crates back and forth on the shore.

"So boats can get passed the piranhas, huh?" he mused. "Now, how am I going to get passed you?" He then saw a metal tin a ways off the path he intended to go. Frank aimed his blunderbuss and fired. The shot flew behind the Hoodlum and struck the tin. The Hoodlum, ever wary, immediately dropped the crate and ran to the tin. Frank jumped onto the land and sprinted off down the northern path. He skidded to a stop in front of a larger, amber-bearing tree. Frank looked around and saw a stack of crates. There was an island further out, and Frank got an idea. Picking up the crates, he tossed them into the bog, and formed a somewhat-complete path to the island. Hopping along the crates, Frank reached the small island, and found several boats lined up in a row to another spit of land in front of the outpost. Frank took one immediately and rowed away.

"Mission accomplished!" he grinned, rowing away. Then he stopped, looking at the horizon. There were several blimps, with lights coming from each of them.

"I know those," he muttered. "Those are Hoodlum blimps. And…they're coming _this way_." There was an entire Hoodlum patrol approaching on all sides, as was custom in Hoodlum controlled areas. Go in, come out. Converge and expand. Frank had miraculously ended up in one of the worst places to be transported to. The only thing worse would've been if the hallway had dumped in the Hoodlum HQ. He was a wounded enemy of the Hoodlums, and in about 5 minutes, every Hoodlum in about a 500 mile radius would be on top of him. Frank knew of only one place to go; the outpost the boats led to. It had a roof and wouldn't be searched by the Hoodlums. If it followed like the others, everyone there would be asleep. Frank knew one thing: He couldn't turn back and go back up the cave. He knew going that way would only lead him back to the small cauldron cave, and by then the Hoodlums would be awake. He had to keep moving.

Frank silently brought the boat in under the outpost. Climbing the ladder, Frank saw that sadly, the two Hoodlums manning this one were awake and searching for something in the bog—or some_one_. One approached the ladder. Frank ducked down and waited until the footsteps stopped. Then, he grabbed the Hoodlum by the cloak and threw him into the water. No sound was made. Frank proceeded up the ladder and into the outpost. he saw the other Hoodlum was looking over the other side, out one of the three makeshift windows. Frank snuck up, and then pushed him over. There was a small yell, a splash, and then the distinctive sound of piranhas tearing apart clothing made of animal hair. The Hoodlums had been disposed of.

"I could try to hide out here," Frank looked out one of the windows, watching the patrol close in, "but if there's a way to move on, I'd be a lot safer." He looked through the outpost, and discovered that there was a hole in the far right corner, behind a table with two unopened bottles of plum juice and a lit candle. Frank jumped down the hole, and was now almost certainly safe from the Hoodlum patrols. He was in a series of tunnels underneath the water in the bog. Frank continued on, distancing himself from the hole.

"Ugh," he groaned. "Everything's damp down here." Ignoring the feeling he'd walked into nature's mouth, Frank continued through the surprisingly deserted tunnels. He hopped onto mushrooms and jumped from land to land, but saw no Hoodlums. Evenutally, the tunnel came to an end. Frank looked at the enormous opening and saw a huge manor, partially silhouetted in the double-moonlight. A flag waived from the top, and there were many lights on. There were no Hoodlums anywhere, save the patrol enclosing. Frank looked at the Mansion in amazement, and noticed numerous emblems everywhere, all a regale-looking "R" in a circle. The most impressive was over the door.

"I doubt the Hoodlums will ignore this tunnel," Frank looked behind him. "There was nowhere to hide there either. Looks like this manor is the only place left to hide." With that, Frank pushed open the double-doors and stepped inside.

* * *

The inside of the manor was almost overly fancy. The foyer alone was decorated lavishly, with bright red carpets and golden chandeliers. But there was not a soul to be seen. Frank decided to start on the first floor. He went to his left, and entered a small kitchen. In the corner there was a cauldron with a bubbling green substance in it.

"That looks…" Frank stared, "…familiar." He continued on, until he found a peculiar room with a telescope pointed, not up, but out.

"Weird," Frank stated. "There's a mirror attached to it, and a chair. The mirror's reflecting the foyer, at an angle which…" he stopped. The mirror was at an angle so that the viewer could look at who entered the manor. It viewed the main door perfectly. Instinct took over, and Frank felt the seat. Sure enough, it was warm. _Someone had watched him come in_. As if on cue, Frank felt a rush of wind go by him. A bronze arrow wobbled in the wall, with an "R" engraved upon it. Frank spun around only to see a strange lizard-like man with a large nose, clad in red and yellow garb and a very foppish hat, rushed out. Frank went through the same door, but the lizard was too fast. Frank stopped short. He was back in the foyer, and the lizard was nowhere to be seen. Frank sighed. This guy wasn't a Hoodlum, and this meant he wasn't a threat. Just an annoyance. Then a ball of the green substance he'd seen in the abandoned house under the tree and in the kitchen flew over his head. Frank turned to see a gray, fat frog in a green dress with yellow polka dots and a red cauldron on her head, as well as an impossibly large fork, run away.

"Geez, there's _two_ of them?" Frank grumbled. "Alright, now I'm annoyed."

"You will not escape!" The lizard jumped from the second floor, firing his rifle, which shot the arrows Frank had seen earlier.

"How dare you trespass in here! You're dead meat!" The frog rushed out from the kitchen, speaking so fast Frank almost didn't understand her.

"Oh, for the love of…" Frank turned to the lizard first, punched him in the stomach, grabbed his gun, spun around and fired it with one hand and no preparation time. The arrow hit the frog's fork (her weapon) and shot it back, pinning it to the wall.

"Will you guys at least give me a chance to explain?!"

* * *

"So you aren't one of the Hoodlums, then," the lizard concluded, after Frank's explanation.

"No," Frank said, "I'm not."

"Well, you should have told us!" the frog was suddenly incredibly cheery. "We wouldn't have attacked you had we known that!"

"My I ask who's company I'm in?" Frank turned to the lizard.

"I," the lizard began. "am the great, and esteemed Count Razoff, the Hunter! There is not one thing in this bog I have not caught!"

"You can call me Begoniax," the frog told Frank. "I'm a witch, you see. That potion would've turned you into a frog! Razoff and I are living together now!" She gave a dreamy sigh, which seemed weird coming from her, who'd tried to skewer him on a fork 10 minutes ago.

"I'm Frank," Frank introduced himself. "I'm trying to save the world from André, and find Rayman." Both Razoff and Begoniax gasped at the mention of Rayman's name.

"We've both crossed paths with Rayman in the past," Razoff said. "He was the one that got away."

"I mistakenly took him for a pervert when he burst through the ceiling of my outhouse," Begoniax said. "We have a little spat. He won. In the end we're both glad we didn't kill him. He saved us from André more than once, and we were thinking of starting a Resistance to help keep André at bay and find him again."

"But what about this place?" Frank asked. "In the bog, this mansion is fairly obvious."

"I've covered it with foliage," Razoff smiled. "It looks like a hill now!"

"I can use my magic mirrors to transport members to different locations," Begoniax chimed in. "Are you familiar with them?"  
"Yes," Frank replied. "I've had experience with mirrors on multiple accounts."

"Excellent!" Begoniax exclaimed. "And now, I have a mission for you."

"Mission?"

"Yes," Begoniax said. "It's my job to do two things: cook, and supply missions. My frogs bring me information from all over the world! With our base in the Bog of Murk and my mirrors as transportation, we'll be untraceable!"

"Alright," Frank gave Razoff a questionable look. Razoff pointed to his mouth, shook his head, and moved his hand horizontally across his throat. _Don't try to argue or she'll become nasty_.

"Okay!" Begoniax was clearly enjoying this. "One of the frogs is on his way back with something important. Get yourself set up and ready to go!"


	2. Mission 00

Mission 00

Investigate the Disturbance

Intel has reported that there have been sightings of a mysterious character around the Fairy Council. Travel there and investigate. If the character is hostile, destroy him. If not, determine his connection to Rayman and recover any knowledge this character my have of his disappearance.

Frank entered the mirror Begoniax had prepared for him and found a familiar hallway. Begoniax had cast a permanent spell on him, so that she and Razoff at the mansion could stay in touch with Frank and see what he was doing at all times, as well as talk with Frank in order to update him on information of some sort.

"The problem with the mirrors," she was saying, "is that due to the Hoodlums' meddling, their source has locked it self up to protect itself. You're going to have to solve the timed puzzles in that corridor in order to reach the Fairy Council. Good luck." He heard a click, and Begoniax was gone. Frank sighed.

"Always a freakin' catch…" he muttered. There was a switch in the room, brightly lit and clean as always. Frank stepped on it, and a bunch of crowns appeared. Frank knew he had to collect them before the ticking he kept hearing stopped. Frank, who'd been healed back at the manor, easily rushed through and grabbed all the crowns. The wall in front of him slid open to reveal a tall room and…a cage?

"Hey!" a vice came from the cage. "Mind helping an ex-Hoodboom out here?"

"The Hoodlums are capturing Hoodlums now?" Razoff's voice came through. "If he's in the cage, I guess he's on our side. Get him out and bring him back."

"That's not him, Razoff!" Begoniax's voice was pretty loud in Frank's ear. "Frank's not even in the world yet! Frank, he's obviously an ally, but he's not who you're looking for! Set him free and keep moving!"

"Understood," Frank shot the cage. It exploded, and a Hoodboom uncurled himself and stood up.

"Hey, thanks, my man!" He rushed up and gave Frank a hug. "I'm Larry! Nice to meetcha!" He grabbed Frank's hand and shook it vigorously.

"I'm Frank," Frank muttered, taken aback by the Hoodboom's outgoing nature.

"Alright Frank!" Larry shouted. "Man, I can already tell1 You an' me are gonna be best friends! I know it! I got me that good ol' Hoodboom intuition and instincts! And I know you a guy who Ima gonna be friends with! Where are we and how'd I get here?"

"You mean you don't know?" Frank asked, astonished. "You're in a mirror corridor that leads from the Fairy Council to the Bog of Murk. And you'd know better than I would how you got here."

"Huh," Larry looked around. "Oh, well, guess I don't. Whatever. Hey, you need to get up there?" he pointed to a mirror far out of their reach.

"Actually," Frank said, "yeah, I do."

"Cool," Larry pulled out a bomb. "I'll get some stairs then." He stepped on a switch, and four pillars, each bearing a target on their top rose out of the ground. Larry pulled out three more bombs, and tossed each of the four bombs onto all four pillars. Every one of them hit dead center. The pillars fell, and stairs appeared from the light from the windows, leading up to the mirror.

"If you had bombs, why didn't you just break out of the cage yourself?" Frank asked.

"Um…" Larry thought for a moment. "I dunno. Come on! Exit's this way!" He sprinted up the stairs, and Frank followed.

"Man," Begoniax said, "that guy's _nuts_."

* * *

The previously united pair stepped into a calm, peaceful forest. It was night out, and, looking up, Frank could see many stars winking back at him. Two moons hung in the sky to the east, one waxing while its younger brother waned. Frank could hear the quiet gurgle of a brook moving through the forest. It was truly a beautiful forest, peacefully sleeping in the warm night.

"So why are we here?" Larry looked around. "I need something to do or this place's atmosphere will just lull me to sleep."

"We're here to find a person who may have a connection with Rayman," Frank told him, "and see if he knows where he went."

"Hey, isn't that Rayman dude, like, limbless?" Larry slurred. Frank turned around to see him swaying. He was standing next to a bright red mushroom that had a suspicious chunk taken out of it. "Dude...when I see him, I'm gonna be all like 'Wassup with your arms? Oh, that's right—you don't got none!'" Larry gave a drunk laugh.

"Try the mushrooms?" Frank asked.

"Hey..." Larry looked at one of the mushrooms. "This one's got eyes on it!" Frank walked over and hit Larry on the head with the butt of his blunderbuss. Thankfully, jarring a Hoodlum over the head is all it takes for them to sober up.

"I don't need you being stupid _and_ crazy," He told Larry, "so don't eat the plants here." Larry nodded, scratching his head.

"So where's our way out of here?" Larry looked up and pointed. "Can I step on the mushrooms? Because they form a flora staircase." Frank followed his gaze and saw that their exit was a small hole in the large wooden tree in front of him, and that the mushrooms formed a sort of entrance to it. Frank took initiative and jumped from one up to the other. Larry followed suit.

At the other end, the cave fell away to reveal more forest, but with a clearing that had a stream and a lake in it. Mushrooms rose out of the lake, and the area was lit a little by widely spaced magical lanterns. After the mushrooms, the path curved upward until a fallen tree provided a bridge. It went farther up to a hole in a large tree on the opposite side of where Frank and Larry were standing. Frank gestured to Larry and they carefully moved up the path. Eventually they reached the hole in the tree. As they went through it, eyes peeked out from the holes in the tree. The tunnel ended in a bridge overlooking a marvelous lake, dotted with little islets. Trees were silhouetted against a light purple that deepened to dark blue in the sky. The two moons could be seen clearly now, and in front of them was—

The Fair Council

Frank murmured, "I'd never imagined we would've ended up here..."

"Hey, Frank," Larry tapped Frank on the shoulder, "'Sup with the frog?" Next to an empty bottle of plum juice, a blue toad slumped, hiccupping.

"That's a toad," Frank corrected. "And I think he's our mysterious person." Frank hopped down and approached the toad. Suddenly, the toad jumped up, staggering. He raised his fists in a boxing position.

"Hoodlums!" he slurred. "Come on and get some, I ain't afraid'a youse!"

"Think he's drunk," Frank whispered. He then clubbed the toad in the head. The same technique that worked on Larry worked on the toad, apparently, because he sat up, and no sign of intoxication was on his face.

"Wha-?" his head shook. "Hoodlums!" He got up and made to run away, but Frank got him first.

"Ex-Hoodlums," he said. "We're part of a group that's trying to hold back the Hoodlums and find Rayman. Do you know where he is?"

"Oh, Rayman!" Globox said dramatically. "My bestest friend in the world! I've been searching for him, too, you know. Hey—we should join forces! With my intell—intellec—smarts and, you guys, we could find Rayman!"

"I don't see why not," Frank agreed. "Begoniax, you get that?"

"Every word," Begoniax replied. "There's a mirror in front of the Fairy Council. It'll take you back here. Bring the toad, too."

"My name's Globox!" the toad looked around.

"Frank," the Hoodmonger told him.

"I'm Larry!" the Hoodboom shouted. "Please to meet you, Globox! You like plum juice, 'cuz I do!"

"Because Larry wasn't bad enough," Frank heard Razoff say. Globox moved his bulk along the islets, jumping with a slight "Hee-heeee!" every now and then. He then walked slowly along up to the mirror, his webbed feet flapping with every step. Frank and Larry caught up with Globox just as he screamed and hid behind a bush. Frank turned and caught sight off a large Hoodlum company headed their way.

"Larry!" he called. Larry turned, two unlit Molotov (Plum Juice) Cocktail bottles in his hands.

"Ready," he was suddenly serious. Most Hoodbooms couldn't do that.

Frank charged, his blunderbuss already firing at one of the first Hoodlums. The bullet hit dead on, taking off the Hoodlum's head. As he fell, though, five more rose to take his place. And more were coming out of the tunnel. Larry lobbed a few bombs, and every time one left his hand, another one would roll out of the sleeve into his waiting palm. Frank fired off several more shots, and each one hit a Hoodlum. But the Hoodlums continued to appear from the cave. No matter how many Frank shot, they would not be stopped.

"Frank," Larry threw another bomb, "this isn't working..." Frank's thoughts moved rapidly in his head, so fast he only comprehended snippets of them. They mixed and blurred. Frank didn't like this. He needed time to think, time to watch and wait, time he didn't have. A Hoodlum came too close to him and Frank snapped out of his thoughts long enough to strike at him with the butt of his rifle. The Hoodlum was forced back, and frank saw something drop. A red and horribly battered can...

"Larry!" Frank pointed to the laser detergent can. "It's a combat fatigues can!"

"Good thing, too," Larry tossed another bomb. "We can't hold these guys off forever." Frank kicked the can and watched as the laser shot out of it. He'd never used one of them before, so he figured it would be interesting.

Frank had never felt anything quite like the surge of power he got from the can. He felt incredibly strong, and he looked at himself. His normal Hoodmonger uniform had changed to blue and red, like a Hoodmonger Officer, but different somehow. He felt a light weight in both his hands, and he looked to see two massive, cannon-like guns in the place of his blunderbuss. The gigantic barrels seemed to glow like fire. Frank felt his power grow to even greater levels as he hoisted both the guns up and aimed.

* * *

When Larry touched the can, he suddenly saw his enemies as for what they really were: targets. A bunch of moving targets just _waiting_ to be hit. Larry couldn't wait to watch them blow up. He gave a gleeful Hoodboom laugh. He then looked down at his new red and blue uniform, and then felt the energy of raw combustion flowing through his hands, and smiled. Looking at the red and blue sparks leaping from his gloves he got in a stable stance.

* * *

The single shot took out an entire row of Hoodlums, leaving floating black fuzz and ash in its wake. He then adjusted and fired the other one. At first Frank was sorely disappointed. His left-hand gun fired a single, thin ray, smaller than his original shot, which hit one Hoodlum, did no apparent damage, then vanished. After about three seconds, though, that Hoodlum suddenly exploded in a blaze of red chaos, taking at least six others with him. Frank smiled, and then wondered if that was as strong as it went. Thinking while shooting, he then remembered that Hoodmongers had a charge shot used by holding down the trigger for a certain duration. Figuring that it was worth a try, Frank held down the triggers on both guns, feeling a growing shake within them. When he could barely hold the guns, Frank let go. Both guns then fired respective red and blue lasers that scythed across the field, utterly destroying every Hoodlum in their path. The attack was short but devastating, and the Hoodlum ranks had dwindled immensely. Frank felt his power ebbing away rapidly as a resounding spiral of light went up his body. He was back to normal. Larry, however, still had about five seconds to go. Frank noticed that a large sphere of pure energy was forming in his hands, sparks leaping from his entire body to it and vise-versa. Larry suddenly heaved, throwing the sphere into the remainder of the once massive Hoodlum company. The sphere exploded with gusto, and Frank, Larry, and Globox (whom which I'm sure _all_ of us forgot was even there, Frank and Larry included) were treated to a very nice fireworks show.

"Yeah!" Globox clapped. "And don't you think of coming back here again!"

"That was the coolest thing ever!" Larry jumped up and down. "Can we do it again, Frank? Huh?"

"No!" Razoff cried out. "You three are coming back, now, as your mission is done, and we do not want to disturb the fairies right now!" the mirror seemed to jump. As dawn was breaking over the Fairy Council, Frank, Larry, and Globox went into the mirror, leaving behind a once-again peaceful world.

* * *

Upon arrival at the Bog of Murk, Frank was astounded to see that it was still night.

"The suns never rise in the nether-regions, Frank," Begoniax explained. "There's simply a day-night, and a night-night, when everything's asleep. Right now would be the day-night part. But that's not important right now!" Frank jumped at her change in temper.

"Listen up, all of you," Razoff walked into the room, "because we have a serious problem. Get yourselves some sleep, because you're staying up late tonight."


	3. Mission 01

Mission 01

Locking the Back Door

We have recently received word of a Hoodlum Outpost in the Bog of Murk that is being used as a loading and deployment zone for Hoodlums, artillery, and general cargo. The Hoodlums appear to be working on an underground tunnel system from this outpost to the rest of the Bog of Murk. Not only is this a general threat, but the tunnel system will run directly underneath the Resistance Base. As a matter of fact, the Hoodlums angle of trajectory will send the Hoodlums straight into Razoff's underground arena and dungeon, giving the Hoodlums an entrance into the base. This breach is expected to occur in about 3 hours. Take along Larry and Globox and reach the outpost via an emergency exit from the tunnel, and dispose of any Hoodlums. It is very likely that the Hoodlums stationed at the outpost will be asleep, but the miners are working straight through the night and will raise the alarm if they spot you. Take them out quickly and quietly to avoid discovery.

Frank and Larry first went to Begoniax for "something important."

"I'm glad to see you both here," Begoniax was holding a needle and thread. "I have something to show you." She gestured to behind her, where a poster shoed the simple of a gear with a tattered banner behind it.

"What is this?" Frank asked.

"It's the symbol of the Resistance!" Begoniax exclaimed. "The Hoodlums will know by this symbol on our backs! Turn around." Frank and Larry obliged, and Frank felt several quick pokes as thread was woven in. When they stopped, Begoniax handed Frank a mirror, which reflected off another mirror, so that he could see his back.

"Not bad," Larry was looking at his own symbol. "I like it."

"It'll do," Frank agreed.

"Now, there's another reason why I called you here," Begoniax had the two men sit down. "I've studied the can you brought me and I think that I've figured out how to make one myself!" She pulled out a black can with the same weird face on it. It was even battered in the same way.

"Frank, Larry," Begoniax pushed the can forward a little. "Touch the can." Frank hesitated, purely because he had no idea just what was going to happen, but then he touched it. Frank felt lighter, almost to an extreme. He moved his foot and noted how it naturally didn't make a sound. Something did, and Frank instinctively pulled something out of its holster and spun around, his aim already true. He realized he was holding a pistol instead of his regular weapon. He looked down at himself and saw that he was a mass of grays and blacks. In all honesty, he liked the look.

* * *

As Larry touched the can, everything went black. Then, a second later, Larry felt his hearing enhance to incredible measures, until it was at a level of intensity that would drive the average person mad. Suddenly, Larry could see again. He could see the sounds as they went along. He could tell a bug by it's skittering, just as he could tell a rock by how sounds reverberated within it. Everything was monochrome, in a way, but at the same time, it couldn't be any more colorful.

* * *

"This is incredible," Frank muttered in amazement. He looked around, listening to the soft creeks in the wood as his feet shifted.

"This is so cool!" Larry acted like a little kid with his new toy. "I'm like a super ninja! I can _hear_ you, Frank, and because of that, I can _see_ you! This is _so_ awesome!"

"So couldn't you do make an incredible laser detergent that would give us unlimited power to help us save the world?" Frank asked.

"No," Begoniax sighed. "That's beyond my power. This was all I could muster."

_Figures,_ Frank rolled his eyes. _That would've been too easy anyway_. Globox walked in the room.

"Hey, are we going, or—aw, you guys aren't into the useless costumes, too!" Globox sighed. "I can't believe people like those things! They don't disguise you at all, I mean, I recognized Rayman whenever he had one of them, and I recognize you too!" Frank flinched a little at the sound of Rayman's name. He was antsy to find him, and hearing his name sometimes made Frank want to just run off and start looking under every piece of dirt in the world. He didn't like the feeling.

"Globox is right," Begoniax showed them to the door. "It's the appropriate time to leave, now. There's a boat waiting outside the mansion. Get moving, you three." Frank walked up to the door and was startled to see an ugly bulge appear in it, which was quickly followed by a few more. Frank backed away, and the attacks stopped coming.

"There's a Spineroo stationed outside the door," Larry explained. "I was able to here him when you approached. Do we have another way around?"

"Yeah, around back," Begoniax gestured to another room behind the kitchen.

"Wait..." Frank paused for a moment. "They deployed a Spineroo here, which means that this group knows the location of the base. The only reason that they wouldn't just come in and try to kill us now would be—"

"They already know that they're going to plow through into my house!" Razoff had appeared at the top of the stairs. "Frank! Larry! Toad! You must stop the Hoodlums immediately! My house—I mean, the Resistance—depends on it! Go, go!" He pushed Frank and Larry to the secret back exit, Globox following behind. As Frank, Larry, and Globox were pushed out the door to a spit of land with a boat on the side, Frank heard Razoff say, "Barricade that wall with everything! We need support!"

"See, I didn't like that lizard from the beginning," Globox said to Frank and Larry, "way back when he captured me! I knew he was going to be trouble, I knew it!" Frank walked over to the boat, Larry and Globox following. Moving along the side of the river, they soon found the emergency exit tunnel.

"Idiots," Frank muttered. "Forgetting that most Hoodlums can't swim, they built the emergency exit right into the bog." Globox looked at the bog and jumped as a piranha jumped out of it.

"Aaah!" he cried out, leaping into the cave and disappearing.

"That stupid toad's going to blow our cover!" Frank made to charge after him.

"Wait," Larry had his eyes closed. "He's stopped. I think he's hiding behind a mass of earth."

"You mean a rock?"

"No, sound would reverberate off rocks," Larry got out oddly calmly and walked inside. Frank, as a precaution, pulled the boat up to cave, in case _they_ needed to escape. Then, he followed Larry, who had by now found Globox and was standing over him, juggling plum juice bottles.

"Don't go running through the cave or this mission is shot," Frank instructed Globox. He then snatched one of the plum juice bottles in midair and stuck it back on Larry's belt. Larry gave a child's crestfallen look and lowered his head. Frank sighed and snuck along, Larry quietly following, and Globox trying to be as brave and noiseless as possible. Frank decided to kill the miners first and halt the digging operation. He turned to the right and crept along until he saw a massive wall that was being slowly chipped away by Hoodlums. A Hoodmonger Officer was sleeping by them, and a Hoodmonger Soldier was left in charge.

"Five miners, one sleeping guard, and one chief," Frank whispered to Larry. He was trying not to notice the foul smell coming from Globox that had appeared when the toad had seen the seven Hoodlums.

"My bombs can take out the miners," Larry suggested. "Think you can shoot the Soldier, than kill the sleeping Officer over there?"

"That might work," Frank agreed. "Call it."

"Three...two...one...mark." Two bombs flew as the Hoodmonger Soldier fell, minus the head. One instant later the Officer became a rumpled pile of vibrantly-colored clothes as the two bombs silently exploded, killing the five minors.

"That should buy us some time," Frank looked at his surprisingly powerful pistol. "We need to keep going before more Hoodlums come and discover the bodies. Move." The trio crept along with relative ease, dispatching Hoodlums working in the tunnel quickly and efficiently. Finally, they reached the outpost. It was surprisingly well-manned: there were two Hoodlums asleep on mats with ragged pillows on them, then there were two more playing poker at a table, plum juice bottles at their sides, and then there was another one looking expectantly out the window, which actually had a small hallway for what looked like a loading dock for airships.

"This is going to be difficult," Frank whispered. "Leave the sleeping two for last. From the looks of things, the two playing poker are pretty plastered."

"What makes you say that?" Larry asked.

"One of them already has three aces and the only thing he laid down was a pair of fours," Frank noted.

"Yep, they're drunk all right," Larry agreed. Globox simply nodded.

"Which means that they aren't alert enough to know if the only serious one in this group gets his head blown off," Frank aimed his pistol and fired. There was a quiet "mmph!" and then silence as the Hoodlum's body fell to the ground. As expected, the two players didn't notice.

"Larry," Frank signaled. Larry, using their hiccups as an identifier for their location, tossed a single grenade onto the table. It exploded, killing both Hoodlums, without a sound. Frank then aimed carefully and killed both of the sleeping Hoodlums with one well-angled shot.

"Globox," Frank quietly called him over. "Go up top and make sure that there aren't any other land routes to this outpost." Globox grudgingly went up and looked around. He then came back much more calm.

"Nothing but piranha-infested waters for miles, captain!" he said in a normal voice.

"Alright," Frank stood up, watching as Larry followed suit. "We stopped the dig. Now we just have to go back home, and—"

"Hold on boys!" Begoniax voice came through quite clear inside the group's heads. "We have a problem! A Hoodlum airship is coming in for ammo and plum juice. You need to dispose of them to keep them from discovering the operation! Estimated time for the airship is about one hour." Frank sighed.

"Better get yourselves comfortable," he told his comrades. "It's going to be a bit of a wait."

* * *

Globox's snores filed the outpost with a strange peace as Frank watched for the airship (which is actually a blimp). Larry had earlier found a supply of plum juice by the table, and was currently playing a candlelit game of Solitaire. He and Globox had been drinking the plum juice earlier, and Globox had passed out, so Frank had moved him onto one of the mats.

"You seem uneasy," Larry commented, shuffling the cards again.

"I'm amazed you're not," Frank replied.

"About what?" Larry asked. "This? This is going to be easy. They come in, we hide out, they die, and we go home. Simple."

"It's not that," Frank sighed. "About this whole thing. Do you really think that we'll be able to pull this off? This whole saving the world thing?"

"I can't say for sure," Larry shrugged, gulping down another bottle. "We'll just have to wing it."

"That's not good enough, though," Frank groaned. "I'm really nervous about doing this. Sure, I may act tough and whatever, but I'm scared, honestly. On this mission we performed well, but what about what's up ahead? What if we mess up once? What if we _fail_?"

"Hey, Rayman did it many times over," Larry noted.

"But, that's _him_!" Frank exclaimed. "Rayman's a hero! And we're...not. We're a ragtag group of ex-Hoodlums, a hunter, a witch, and a toad, and we aren't like Rayman! Rayman would've found some way to do this entire thing without even worrying at all."

"I wasn't worried."

"You're _never_ worried!" Frank cried out. "You take this as one big game, like any other Hoodboom! I don't know if you even care or not, because you can't show it! Maybe you don't care about screwing up, but I do! I don't know if you're looking at the bigger picture, here! It took us three people to do this, and Globox barely did anything! We almost ran out of time because the Hoodlums already tracked down our position and set up a barricade! Rayman could've done this better! That's why I'm worried! We _aren't_ Rayman! We _aren't_ heroes! ...What can we do?"

"Try," Larry answered, not looking up from his game. "It's true. We aren't Rayman, and maybe we are just a group of outcasts in our own way. But maybe...maybe that's all we need to be. Maybe it's not about becoming heroes, but just giving people hope. There are creatures out there, Teensies, Lums, maybe even Knaaren, who are looking for light in this age of darkness. Maybe we aren't heroes, but we are part of group that's fighting _back_. That inspires hope in people, and eventually, who knows? Maybe they'll start to fight back, too. So what if we screw up a mission? We tried, and we can try again. It's not necessarily _doing_ that gives people hope and inspires them. Sometimes, it's just _trying_ to do something. So you're right, we aren't Rayman. But we _are_ something that the denizens of this world can look to for hope. And for me, that's all that matters." Frank looked at him, and eventually smiled.

"Thanks, Larry," he said. "An airship is approaching. Hide Globox and let's get to work so we can _all_ sleep." Larry nodded, dragging the toad behind a sack of crates, and then hiding there himself. Frank hid behind a barrel of plum juice. The airship docked, and a Hoodmonger Officer, accompanied by two Hoodmonger Soldier bodyguards walked out.

"Where are the guards of this outpost?" He asked angrily. "Lord André will certainly here of this." One of the Soldiers saw the plum juice barrel, and walked over to it. When the sound of his robe shuffling stopped, Frank fired through the empty barrel. He heard a groan in respond, followed shortly by the sound of the Hoodlum falling. This attracted the attention of the Officer and the other Soldier, who approached the barrel, guns raised. Larry then tossed a bomb over and killed the other Soldier. The Officer found himself suddenly alone, and was looking around frantically. When he saw Globox's feet sticking out from behind a stack crates, he raised his gun to fire. Frank jumped out and whacked him with the butt of his pistol, then fired it.

"See?" Larry said. "All you have to do is try, and sometimes even the most hopeless situations turn in your favor." Frank playfully punched him on the shoulder, then looked at the airship.

"Should I launch her to the bottom of the bog, chief?" Larry asked.

"No," Frank decided. "If we leave it here, then it will look like there's always another ship restocking, so the Hoodlums won't come this way anymore."

"An inspired plan, Frank," Larry agreed. "Come on, let's get Globox and get ourselves home."

"Where I happen to have a mission waiting for you!" Begoniax chimed in. "Just kidding, but I do have one for you tomorrow. Get some sleep, now!"


	4. Mission 02

Mission 02

Rescue the Prisoner

We have reason to believe that another rogue Hoodlum is currently imprisoned in Clearleaf Forest. The reason for the detainment is unclear as of yet, but appears to be due to wanton destruction of the previous cell. Exact whereabouts are unknown, but sources say that the prisoner is being held deep within a hidden chamber of the rebuilt Hoodlum Base Camp. Find him, recruit him, and bring him to safety.

"Before you leave," Begoniax stopped the usual trio from living. "Do something about that Spineroo!"

"Why?" Frank asked, shrugging.

"Every time we go near the door, that thing makes another dent in it!" Begoniax jumped up and down. "Soon that door's going to collapse and _then_ where will we be?! Go out the back door and get rid of it or..._something_! Go!" She ushered them out of the back door, and Frank got the idea to grab a boat. They snuck around and eventually got to the other side of the house, where the Spineroo sat. It gave an expectant _*clang!*_ when it saw them.

"So how do we get this mute guy to join the cause?" Larry asked. Globox blew a raspberry at him.

"Easy," Frank grabbed a bottle of plum juice off Larry and tossed it to the Spineroo. The Spineroo looked at it, then gulped it down.

"We have plenty more if you let us in and out, and keep the Hoodlums out instead," Frank added. The Spineroo seemed to think about it, then nodded happily, like a dog.

"Name...Bob," he choked out. "Please...meet...you." He extended a hand with a giant weight attached to it.

"Pleasure," Frank shook Bob's hand. "Alright guys, we got a mission." Frank, Larry, and Globox were let inside, and Razoff promptly sent them into the mirror.

* * *

Inside the mirror, a surprising problem appeared.

"Uh, Begoniax?" Frank checked in. "Yeah, there's a _wall_ in our path. Um...can you magic it away, or something?"

"I know what this is!" Globox walked up to it. "This is a magic door! I opened three of these when we were going to get Andy at the Summit Beyond the Clouds. I just have to find the right formula! Hocus pocus? Nee, nee...nee! Nazoom melek uhtoo-oo-oom! Mirror, mirror, on the wall—nah, that won't work. Dratoo varata nektoh! ...Guys, go play somewhere else I'm _trying_ to concentrate! ...Open sesame!" As Frank and Larry walked off, Larry eventually asked, "'Andy?' Who's that?"

"I think he's referring to André," Frank suggested.

"Wait," Razoff said. "Globox _knows_ André? And from the sound of things, he knows him well enough to call him _Andy_?! This guy has some...shady...connections."

"I'll ask him about it later," Frank dismissed Razoff's comment and instead looked around for something to do. The hallway it self was dark, but...

"Oh," Frank sighed. "Hey, Larry, pick up the crown." Larry grabbed the crown, and then, already knowing what to do, walked over and stepped on the pedestal. The door opened, revealing the exit mirror.

"Hah!" Globox clapped. "I did it again! I'm the master of the doors! Good thing I was here, huh guys?" Larry made a move to say something, but Frank hushed him.

"Let's go," he stepped into the mirror, and the other two followed.

* * *

Clearleaf Forest

Frank was unfamiliar with this part of the forest he entered. Then he realized why—he was above it.

"Whoa!" he was standing on a massive hill overlooking miles of forest. A few trees rose here and there, but all that was around him were some small trees, grass and a building not to far away.

"Man, I didn't know that Begoniax would drop us on top of a mountain!" Larry exclaimed. "Hey, what's that thing?" He pointed to a strange stand with odd sparks and lights spinning around it, coming from an enormous green light flashing out of a floating piece of...some sort round material.

"Oh, that's the exit portal to a place with very nice music!" Globox explained. "Rayman went into a bunch of those and I got to ride on a helicopter."

"Don't you mean _in_ a helicopter?"

"No," Globox replied. He then walked off to the building, casually glancing at his beautiful surroundings. Frank followed, then looked up.

"Get down!" he grabbed Larry and Globox and pushed them to the ground as a Hoodlum airship scythed through where the group just was. Frank expected it to turn around, but it instead just kept going.

"That's weird," Larry commented.

"They're alerting the Base Camp," Frank said with sudden realization. "We have to move!" Frank started running, Globox and Larry following behind. He scaled up through the building, and was about to go out onto the bridge when he heard a voice.

"You don't seem like the average Hoodlum," it said. "As a matter of fact, judging by your company, I don't believe you're a Hoodlum at all. Would you mind helping an old Teensie out of his dilemma?" Frank turned to see a cage being held up by a balloon. He walked over and busted it open with his rifle. An aged Teensie fell to the ground, pulled a cane out of his enormous beard and walked to the side.

"I thank you, strange Hoodlum," he bowed. "You are kind, especially for your race."

"We aren't Hoodlums," Frank said, gesturing to Larry and himself. "We're part of a resistance force trying to force back the Hoodlum tide."

"How very noble of you," the Teensie nodded, as if in agreement. "My name is Droth, and I happen to run this observatory. It is good to see you are well, Globox." Globox looked up and waved.

"This is an observatory?" Frank looked around, noting all the drawings posted on the walls, which were actually just open spaces with intriguing brass bars lining them. The bars seemed to be in the shape of vines.

"Of course, you fool!" Droth slammed his cane on the ground. "why else would we put a building on top of hill?!"

"Is there a way down into the forest from here?" Frank decided to change the subject.

"Yes, go through the hollow trunk of the tree across the bridge," Droth pointed. "Before I forget, I would like to ask that you save the other Teensies trapped throughout this world as well. You may need their help, and it's nice to have a world, of happy, free people. Much better than sad, imprisoned people. Those aren't good at all. Good bye, now. I have much to attend to, as I have been in that cage for the past year. My observatory needs so much cleaning, oh yes." He walked off, muttering to himself.

"Weird dude," Larry said after he thought Droth was out of earshot. His response was the book that hit him in the face.

"Jerk!" Larry called. Frank hit him over the head.

"Don't push him!" he said. He then walked off onto the bridge, jumping down the tree trunk.

The group landed at a small section of the path with a light river, coming from a large waterfall at the right side. Frank saw that there was a waterwheel, which could only mean—

"Great," Frank sighed. "A blockade." There was a bridge that led across the river—and right into a Hoodlum blockade, with four Hoodlums. One was carrying heavy supply crates back and forth. Another was drinking plum juice. The third was trying to catch an angry piranha in the river (failing miserably, I might add), and the fourth was standing on a large tower, waiting. A makeshift dumbwaiter lifted up a crate, and the Hoodlum briefly lifted it up, turned, and set it down next to him. After a few minutes, an airship came in, and the Hoodlum picked up the crate and dropped it in the airship, which then departed.

"I'm going to take out the one fishing first," Frank said. "Stay quiet." Frank shot the fishing Hoodlum in the head, killing him. As expected, no one noticed. Frank then took out the drunken Hoodlum, and, due to timing, was almost seen by the Hoodlum moving the crates from the stock to the dumbwaiter. Frank then took out the Hoodlum on the tower, and the last one didn't notice because of his task and the fact that his back was turned. Finally, Frank killed him, too.

"Alright," Frank got up and gestured to Larry and Globox to follow him. "Here's what we're going to do..."

* * *

Twenty minute later, a Hoodlum airship came in for restocking. However, it didn't take the brightest of Hoodlums to notice that the blockade was totally empty. The airship's crew all stepped out, looking around. Out of nowhere, a bomb came over the side, exploding upon hitting the wooden floor and killing the crew.

"Nice job," Frank said from his position on the dumbwaiter. "No get over here so we can get up there." Larry and Globox came over, and each of them stepped onto the dumbwaiter. Frank pulled the rope, moving the group up the tower.

Having reached the top, Frank, Larry, and Globox stepped into the airship. Globox, who had become an expert pilot somehow, assumed the wheel, and the airship took to the skies.

* * *

As Globox flew them leisurely to their destination, Frank looked out with awe. Frank, who had never been on an airship during his time with the Hoodlums, was amazed at how peaceful it was. Looking at up at the patched tarp, then moving down to the open flame keeping the blimp afloat, and finally to the canoe-like basket area, where the group remained, Frank couldn't believe that something so simple could feel so homely and give such an incredible feeling of comfort and amazement. Larry calmly laid on his back at the surprisingly long ship's back, his eyes closed.

"I can't believe that you're not amazed at this!" Frank looked at him.

"Hello," Larry looked up. "Hoodboom here? We live on these things. Unlike you, I actually served in the Hoodlums for some time. Novelty's worn off by now." Frank couldn't imagine how, but Globox interrupted his thoughts.

"Hey guys," he asked, "are we taking over that ship, too?" Frank turned around to see another ship docking at the empty blockade.

"Larry!" Frank grabbed the ex-Hoodboom and pulled him up. "Problem!" He turned Larry around so that his friend could see the problem, too.

"I got it," Larry grabbed a bomb and expertly tossed it into the airship, which promptly exploded.

"Easy," Larry made to lay back down, but then Globox said, "Wow, look at all the big birds coming toward us! Hi birdies! My name's Globox!" He gave a happy wave to the onslaught of Hoodlum airships that saw Larry frag one of their own.

"Globox," Frank tapped him on the shoulder, "those aren't birds." A bullet flew passed Frank's head.

"Give me the wheel!" he made to grab for it, but Globox resisted.

"I want to meet the birdies!" he argued. Frank and Globox had both sets of hands on the wheel, and it was turning back and forth wildly. Larry was trying hard not to be thrown off, his hands clutching the sides.

"Birdies!"

"Wheel!"

"_Birdies_!"

"Give me the wheel!"

"_BIRDIES!!!!_"

"_GLOBOX!!!!_"

There was the sound of a dull thump, and Globox slumped to the floor, unconscious. Frank stood there, a plum juice bottle in his hand.

"Go," he said, swaying slightly.

"You didn't—" Frank started to say.

"Yes I drank it all, _drive_!" Larry fell to the basket, making the airship lurch frighteningly. Frank turned the wheel and looked at his feet. There was—"a gas petal and a brake petal?" Frank said aloud. "On a _blimp_?"

"What does it matter?!" Larry called out. "Make blimp go _zooom_!"

Following Larry's instructions(?), Frank pushed as far down as possible on the gas. The blimp sped up to blinding speed, passing the other airships, which whirled around in surprise.

"Ugh," Globox moaned. "Hey, what the-? Frank! You made me miss the _birdies_!"

"Oh no," Frank moaned as Globox rushed up and grabbed the wheel.

"Turn it around!" he pulled one way, spinning the blimp.

"Those aren't birds!" Frank pulled it the other way.

"Yes they are and I want to see them!" Spin.

"We need to go this way!" Spin.

"Frank, you just don't want to see the birdies!" Spin.

"No, because I don't want to get my head blown off!" Spin.

"Hey _*buuuuurp!*_," Frank and Globox stopped to look at Larry, who was now completely drunk. "...The spinny ride made the fire turn _invisible_. Heh, heh _*hic!*_." Frank looked up to see what he was talking about and discovered with horror that the flame that was keeping the blimp inflated had gone out because of Frank and Globox's constant spinning of the blimp.

"Uh oh," was all he had time to say before the blimp rapidly began it's insane descent. Globox was screaming. Larry was drunkenly going, "Wheeeee-_*hic!*_-eeeeeee..." Frank was holding on for dear life and hoping that they survived the landing. There was a deafening crash made by much more than just trees, and Frank saw the wooden floor of the blimp rapidly come up to meet him before everything went black.

* * *

The world came back in slow, painful clips. Frank was being carried...he could see Larry, who appeared to still be drunk...and he could see Globox, still unconscious. Suddenly, the escorts threw him and Frank hit the ground hard, too hard for him to take in his weakened state. Frank felt a mixture of wood, metal, and tarp, and then nothing more.

* * *

"Frank," a voice whispered. "Frank...wake up...Frank!" Frank felt himself being rattled, and he opened his eyes to see Larry swinging back and forth, shaking him.

_How's he...?_ Frank wondered, then realized that Larry was doing full-body swings because he was hanging from the ceiling—from iron shackles. Frank realized he was the same, as was Globox, who was hanging, unconscious, to his left. Then, to Globox's left, there was someone struggling frantically against the chains.

"Arrgh!" the strange Hoodlum-like voice came from an obviously Hoodlum body, which swung _upside-down_ and hit the ceiling twice, then fell back. Frank then realized two things: 1) This was probably their prisoner, and 2) that he had no legs. He was short in general, but he had no legs. Frank then remembered the one type of ground-based amputee Hoodlum: the Hood Stomper, pilot of the massive leg-machine, the Masterkraag.

"So our target was a Hood Stomper," Frank muttered. Larry nodded.

"Any ideas on how to get him (and us) out of here?" Larry asked. "Because we are shackled to the ceiling in this metal-encased room, and we don't have any weapons."

"I don't know," Frank looked at the floor. "I have no idea how we are going to get out of this one." He and Larry sat (floated?) there, motionless, each lost in their own thoughts.

* * *

"I win," André cackled. "The Resistance's leader, along with his strike force, is in my possession! Rayman, you guys aren't!" André laughed again.

"That's no fun," a mysterious voice said. André turned to see a robed, sinister figure behind him. "What's the point of going for the goal if you have no competition?"

"Who are you?" André asked angrily.

"Whether I'm an ally or adversary is your call, Lord André," the man bowed.

"I like you," André grinned. "You know respect."

"I know to pick the winning team," the man replied.

"Well," André laughed. "You could prove to be a useful addition to my army. Welcome aboard!"

The man bowed again, only this time very low, low enough to where André could not see eyes even more sinister than his narrow as a cruel smile formed...

* * *

Frank didn't know how long he'd been there, lost in empty thoughts, but his head snapped up when he saw a sudden what looked like a giant laser come out of nowhere directly in front of him. The blast drew the eyes of Larry and the other prisoner as well, but Globox was _still_ unconscious. However, when the blast cleared, in its place was a red can.

* * *

"What?!" André slammed his tiny fists on the table. "Where did that come from?! Because of how close that can is, the prisoners will escape! It's not fair, it's just not _fair_!" André screamed in anger. The mysterious man remained silent. Part of him marveled at how André could go from seeming like such a cunning, evil villain to one of the toad's horrible children, but there was another part of him who saw what the event _truly_ meant. The robed man turned and left. If _that_ was changing, then he was going to have to rethink his strategy to ensure his victory. The man sighed as he walked into the hall. No matter. One way or another, he _would_ have his way...

* * *

Frank swung lightly back and forth until his foot tapped the can. Instantly he felt the familiar rush of power as the two guns formed in his hands. Using the spikes on the butts of the guns to his advantage, he rammed both of the shackles, releasing himself. Globox was starting to wake up, and Frank freed Larry and told him to explain. Meanwhile, he went over to the prisoner.

"You want out of here, right?" he asked. The prisoner nodded.

"Well then, you'll have to help us get back at the Hoodlums and stop André," Frank told him. The prisoner bounced happily up and down.

"Glad to hear it," Frank freed him.

"Larry," he called over to his friend, "I need you to carry him until we can find a Masterkraag for him to pilot." He then turned to the Hood Stomper.

"What's your name?" he asked. The Stomper moved his mouth for a moment before starting.

"M...Mor...Mo-ort," he sounded out.

"Mort?" the Stomper nodded.

"Alright," Larry grabbed Mort and slung the legless Hoodlum over his back. Frank then blasted a hole in the wall. Globox, who had been brought up to speed, jumped out, yelled, then ran off. Frank heard a shot fire.

"Let's move!" he jumped out and fired off his right gun, destroying an entire line of Hoodlums. Globox was behind him, now, and he, Frank, and Larry (carrying Mort) started sprinting through the base camp to the outside world. Hoodlums came, but Frank would just fire his right gun and blow through them all.

Eventually, they reached the outside. The sun blinded Frank momentarily, but he recovered quickly—which was good, since if he'd just blindly kept running he would've fallen into the arena. Larry and Globox came behind him and stopped. In the center of the arena was another Hood Stomper, and he had a Masterkraag.

"Frank!" Begoniax voice came in through patches. "Glad—escape!—Mirr—arena!—repea—_there's a mirror at the exit of the arena_!" Begoniax's voice vanished.

"Great," Frank grumbled. "Guys, our only way out is through the mirror at the arena exit."

"She put it there?!" Larry cried out, almost dropping Mort.

"We can't do anything about it now!" Frank responded. "We have an entire base on our trail. Our only option is to beat that Hood Stomper!" With that, he jumped down. Larry pushed Globox down, and then jumped down himself.

The Hood Stomper jumped high into the air. Frank rolled to the side, dodging it. Dust flew everywhere as the Hood Stomper landed.

"We can't beat this thing!" he called to Larry. An unlucky Hoodlum came out and Frank shot him instinctively. He then watched as a green can fell to the ground. Frank looked at Larry, who was already running. Frank followed suit, and reached the can first.

Frank felt exhilaration and speed. He felt fast, and he was ready to run. The feeling was like he was the wind; suddenly, he could move freely, and at any speed he wanted to. Frank could take it nice and slow, or he could _fly_. And now was a time for _flying_. Frank looked at his read and green outfit and the two guns with ten barrels, and readied himself for takeoff.

* * *

Larry wasn't just fast. When he touched the can, Larry realized he was more than fast. He was the very meaning of speed. He could touch a lightning bolt a kilometer away and return in seconds. He could counter-spin a tornado, making it cease to exist. He could traverse the world in an hour. He was speed, and he would not be contained.

* * *

"How is this going to help us?" Frank asked. Larry looked at Mort. Then, without any indication threw Mort onto the Hood Stomper himself. Mort, seeing what to do, began trying to wrestle the Hood Stomper of the Masterkraag by any means necessary. The constant shifts in wait made the machine even more dangerous, because it was now moving randomly, its original pilot locked in combat with another. Hoodlums began storming out of the entrance to the arena, but Frank had already figured out the rest of Larry's plan. He raised his guns and fired, using the ten barrels of each to make machine guns out of them. Larry was throwing bombs at the speed of sound, and Hoodlums were dropping as quickly as they came. Frank suddenly saw, Mort get knocked off the Masterkraag. Apparently Larry saw it, too, because he was over there in an instant.

"Thought you might need some help," he placed a bomb in Mort's hand and then threw him back up there again. Mort use instinct and placed the bomb in the other Hood Stomper's mouth, and soon got the Masterkraag under his control. Now, Mort stopped around, killing Hoodlums with ease, as Frank and Larry picked off the stragglers.

When there were only a few left, Mort jumped high into the air to finish them all off at once. Suddenly, he was slammed by another Masterkraag. Mort and his Masterkraag hit the ground hard, and the machine knelt, as if in defeat. Mort brought it back up again as Frank shot the last Hoodlum. Mort and the Hood Stomper circled each other with their machines as Frank and Larry watched. Suddenly, the other one struck out pushing Mort back. Mort retaliated by swinging from rope to rope on his Masterkraag. The result was miraculously a three-kick-combo, sending the Hood Stomper flying. Something, he did, however, made the Masterkraag back-flip and land on its feet.

Now he was on the offensive, and hit Mort with a series of mid-air kicks before sending him into a wall. Mort's Masterkraag shook and coughed out some smoke. He was losing. The Hood Stomper then charged at Mort, aiming straight for the little Hoodlum in the center of the great machine. The Hood Stomper raised his leg and kicked, but Mort move entirely to one rope, making the Masterkraag duck below the kick.

Suddenly, Mort was up and he launched a flurry of lighting-paced kicks that Frank wouldn't have believed possible in such a bulky machine with only two ropes for controlling. Then, Mort kicked the other Masterkraag up, jumped, did four mid-air kicks, and then slammed his opponent back down. The enemy's Masterkraag sputtered, emitted smoke, and then exploded, taking the Hoodlum with it. Mort landed triumphantly in the center of the arena.

"That was incredible!" Globox clapped, jumping up and down. "That was amazing, wow, spectacular, can we go now?"

"Where were you this whole time?" Frank asked as they got Mort down and walked into the mirror.

"I was watching from a safe distance to make sure I didn't get in the way."

"That's what you'd like us to believe, huh?"

* * *

When Frank entered the mansion again, he was surprised to see that it was crawling with Teensies. They were everywhere, talking, singing, merrymaking, just everywhere.

"Where'd these guys come from?" Frank asked Begoniax.

"Razoff heard what Droth said, and he's been out rescuing Teensies," Begoniax explained. "Says that he's going to do the same tomorrow, too. But...that's not important for you! I have another mission, and it is urgent!"Y


	5. Mission 03

Mission 03

Protect the Target

There is a massive Hoodlum strike company heading to The Land of the Livid Dead on a Search and Destroy mission. A prisoner of theirs had previously escaped, and it appears that they have finally tracked his location to a Teensie village near the sea, and are currently approaching with airships, galleons, submarines, and one Hood Walker. Find the target of the mission and extract him from the Land of the Livid Dead before the Hoodlums reach the shore.

Frank, Larry, and Globox entered the portal, and Frank and Larry went off to find the crown, as usual. However, this time, there was no crown to be seen.

"This is a problem," Frank said, listening halfheartedly to Globox's incessant chanting.

"Hey Frank," Larry pointed. "There's a red can over there." Frank followed his gaze and then understood what Larry was thinking.

"If you can't find a door," Frank pointed the massive right gun at the wall five minutes later. "Make your own." Frank fired, and the wall burst open, revealing the path ahead and the exit. He jumped through the wreckage and briefly heard Globox: "I had no idea I had that much _power_!"

The Land of the Livid Dead

The Land of the Livid Dead was a lot more peaceful than Frank would've thought it would be. It looked like the stereotypical heaven, in a sense; clear, blue water, sunlight, abundant nature, and just the feeling of everlasting bliss. Someone should open a time share here.

"Begoniax," he radioed in, "do you have any idea where the Hoodlums' target is?"

"No, but I do have some other important information," she said. "The Hoodlum strike company will be here in exactly 42 minutes. Better hurry!" Frank's eyes momentarily widened, and in an instant, he was off and running. Larry and Globox followed behind.

The first area was simple. Frank, Larry, and Globox ran through the arches, not missing a single one, and a portal formed on the wall ahead of them. Frank jumped through first, followed by Larry, and an out-of-breath Globox. The second however, was a huge stone tower. Frank frantically looked around, and then saw Larry hopping up massive stone steps in the tower's side. He smiled slightly and followed his friend. At the very top was a gate, which opened as Larry came up the last step. Larry kept on moving, despite Globox's cries of, "Wait! Somebody wait up!" However, when they all got out of the tower they saw—"a dead end," Frank pointed out. "We'll never get out of here!"

"I need a rest," Globox flopped on the ground, panting. Larry was looking up.

"Hey, Frank," he said. "What are those flying rings?" Frank looked up and saw a bunch of stationery flying rings.

"I have no idea," he replied. If only there was something he could wrap onto to those and swing away...like a rope, or a chain...

All of sudden, a familiar laser of light fell down on the space in front of Frank. This time however, it seemed larger, brighter, and _stronger_—it even managed to shake the ground. Frank couldn't tell if that was the effect it had on regular ground but not on metal, or something else, but in its place was a blue can.

* * *

The robed man watched from atop a nearby hill as the light fell upon the ground, and he felt the tremor.

"It was stronger this time," he muttered to himself. "But...it's going to fast. I'm going to have to alter my plan further, and account for any more...disruptions." He turned and walked away.

* * *

When Frank touched the blue can, he felt a thousand volts course through his body, but surprisingly, it didn't hurt. Instead, he felt stronger, and more athletic, like he could somersault and swing everywhere. He looked down at himself and was surprised to see a blue and green coloration to his clothes now. In his hands were two handguns, sharing his colors. He was surprised when he saw sparks leap from his hands and body, jump around him, and then vanish. Out of curiosity, he fired one of the guns, and jumped as a bear trap on a chain sprang out open, then, when the spring had reached its full length, closed tightly, and then retracted back into the gun just as fast. He then looked up and saw the rings. Suddenly, Frank got an idea.

* * *

Larry felt electricity course through his body, he could see electricity particles everywhere suddenly, and then Larry realized that he could tap into it as well. With the intent of using the random electricity in the air, Larry touched one particle. Instantly, a lighting bolt came out, scything through the air, until it hit the ground and exploded. Larry then fired another one at a metal surface, and watched as the bolt stuck there until he telepathically terminated it. Larry then looked at the rings, and he knew what he had to do.

* * *

Frank shot at the ring, and watched with satisfaction as the clamp grabbed onto the ring. Frank was pulled up into the air, and he started swinging. He then jumped at the precise moment, flipped through the air, and shot his other handgun, catching a fleeting glimpse of the clamp latching onto the ring. Satisfied with his new abilities, Frank easily swung up from ring to ring, until he reached the top of the earthy wall. Larry landed behind him.

"How are we going to get Globox up?" Frank asked. All of a sudden there was a shout from below.

"Hey! There's a barrel of plum juice down here!" the shout was followed by a series of gulps, a particularly strange assortment of sounds and then, an inflated Globox, rising up from the ground.

"Hey Frank," Globox slurred. "Let's see your little _*hic!*_ clampy-things do _this_." He was carried over to the top of the cliff, then promptly deflated. He looked at them both, and then hiccupped.

"Hey Frank, I didn't know you were a Hoodlum," he burped. "I thought you were a Lum-lum. Hee...hee...hee..." Some birds chirped in the distance. "Tweet...tweet...tweet, ha, ha, hah..." Globox fell flat on his face and started scooting off like an earthworm. Frank looked at Larry, who shrugged and followed Globox.

"You can't just dismiss it like that!" Frank ran after him.

* * *

The Teensie village was a small, coastal town, populated with little happy folk. When Frank, Larry, and Globox arrived, they led the group directly to the target; a small Hoodstormer, named Jimmy. He was weak but still able to fight, and he was happy to see Frank and company.

"We've all heard about you guys," he explained. "I was hoping the Resistance would seek me out, because I've been wanting to join. So when do we leave?"

"Not now," Begoniax told everyone. "Frank, you took too long. Hoodlum strike company docking in 4...3...2...1..." As if on cue, there was the sound of explosion. Frank, Larry, Jimmy all turned around (Globox went off to hide). Jimmy started his propeller and rose into the air. As Frank went outside, he saw massive amounts of Hoodlums coming ashore. Above, over thirty airships circled the village, bombs being thrown from them with frightening speed and accuracy. And the there was the Hood Walker; a massive, three-legged machine who's head resembled a Black Lum's. The mouth opened and sent out twenty gigantic, firey shells, each of which hit something presumably important. Frank, Larry, and Jimmy desperately tried to fight off the large horde, but were steadily losing. Frank could feel bullets singing his clothes, until finally he was hit. He saw Jimmy get knocked down, Larry falling next to him. Then, Frank felt an earthquake. Looking ahead of him, all he could see was white. When it vanished so did every Hoodlum, except the Hood Walker.

* * *

The robed man watched in awe as the gigantic beam halted the assault before it had even really started. Things were progressing fast...far too fast for him to have ever predicted. Why? Why was _that_ opening at such incredible speed? Could _he_ sense the robed man's presence? Was he forcing this all? The robed man left the world for good this time, as there were some experiments he needed to run...

* * *

The Hoodlum Resistance was back on its feet, but could not seem to damage the Hood Walker.

"I know of that thing's creation," Jimmy remembered. "The weak point is inside, in the back of the head!"

"How do we get up there?" Frank asked. Jimmy looked at the strange clamps he was firing, then saw some scrap-metal in the shape of a ring. "I think I know.

As Frank held on to the ring for dear life, Jimmy flew up, circling around the Hood Walker.

"So why were you kicked out of the Hoodlums, anyway?" Frank asked.

"Because when I fly in those big circles like most Hoodstormers, I—_*blaaargh!*_" Frank tried hard not to look at the bile coming down in front of his face, but it was hard to turn in his position.

"So, motion sickness," he concluded, "Great." They came around to the back of the head, and the hatch was open. There were also three Hoodlums firing at them. Jimmy swung Frank for a moment, resisted the urge to vomit, and then tossed Frank onto the Hood Walker. Frank quickly used his two handguns to dispose of the Hoodlums grabbing one and using it to slam the other two off the head, and then tossing that one into the sea as well. He then went inside. Frank looked at all the simple controls and the two relatively large viewing portals, which made up the pupils of the face on the outside. He then went further in, and eventually found a big sign that said "CAUTION: This is the Hood Walker's Core. If you shoot the core, it will ignite and destroy the Hood Walker in three seconds. So DON'T. SHOOT. THE CORE." After reading this, Frank pulled out his pistol and shot the core. He then ran back up and jumped out as the Hood Walker exploded.

"Nicely done," Begoniax said. "Now take Jimmy and get back here, because there's another mission here that you will fail in three hours. The exit portal is on the beach. Go!"


	6. Mission 04

Mission 04

Prevent the Execution

In 2.5 hours, a captured ex-Hoodlum will be publicly executed by the Knaaren, a tribal desert race, as a sacrifice to their god, the Leptus. This prisoner could be a valuable resource to the Resistance, but is currently wanted dead by both the Hoodlums and the Knaaren. A Hoodlum force is approaching the execution chamber (also the ceremonial chamber for the celebration of the arena victor) called the Chamber of Leptus. As the Knaaren are near-invincible to weapon fire, you will be doing this mission solo. Get in, get the prisoner _with_ his head still attached to his body, and get out...and don't die, that'd wouldn't help us at all.

Frank waved goodbye to Larry and Globox as he walked through the portal. There was no puzzle in this mirror hall, because it was fractured slightly. The hallway and the exit portal wavered, as Frank was looking at them through heat waves. Frank walked slowly through the hallway, but stopped at the portal. He knew that he'd started this whole thing as one man, but being through so many mission with Larry and Globox made it hard to be alone now. Frank felt truly alone, and he didn't want to be here. He'd rather be with his friends watching the world die then be trying to save it by himself.

"_Once you enter the tunnels to find the chamber_," Begoniax had said, "_I'll lose all contact with you. You'll be truly on your own_." Frank remembered it all too well. Although he'd simply nodded, inside he was feeling lost. Before, Frank had never felt like he really was just _one_ person, because that was what he was used to. But now, he'd gotten used to being with a team, and he suddenly felt like he'd had that taken away from him.

Frank then remembered that alone or not, he still had a job to do. And maybe if he performed better than he had the last time he was by himself, he wouldn't be coming _back_ alone, too. He stepped through the portal.

The Desert of the Knaaren

It was hot. It wasn't just hot, it was firey hot. No...it was more than that. The heat was worse than the white hot fires of a thousand burning suns. Okay, you know what? Point is, it was very hot, and Frank was uncomfortable. He looked at the red landscape, and the two orange suns burning brightly in the black sky. Creepy.

Frank realized that he was on a cliff overlooking mysterious architecture: spike gates, oddly carved bridges, and drawings on the wall...all above a bubbling pond of acid. Frank also saw a mixture of vultures and Hoodlum airships in the distance, as well as a very large, peculiar building that looked like a gigantic molar. He then also noticed that the structure below him was crawling with Hoodlums. Frank looked at his regular gun and knew that it would never hit from this distance. He then looked to his left and saw an orange can.

When Frank touched the can, he saw everything sharpen. He could suddenly see every little thing with startling detail, and he felt like he could hit anything from any distance. With some practice, Frank even realized that he could almost zoom in on far away objects if he focused on them. Frank then felt his blunderbuss get slightly heavier, and he looked down to see that he was in an orange and blue outfit and he holding a long rifle with a scope. Getting into a stable position, Frank aimed down through the scope at one of the Hoodlums and fired a silent shot. It hit dead on, and the late Hoodlum's companion spun around wildly. Frank took him out just as easily. Moving quietly along his the cliff, Frank easily took out every Hoodlum. Eventually he found a way down, and Frank took it. Using the bones stuck in the wall as handles, he scaled down the wall and into a cavern. Frank then found himself staring at a massive hole in the ground.

"Wonder who made this," Frank wondered aloud. He then looked down and saw a large, fearsome looking creature, with brown skin, small eyes, and large vicious claws. It wore a hood made from a tattered cloth around its shoulders.

"So that's a Knaaren," Frank muttered. He then aimed his sniper rifle and fired. The Knaaren jumped, then fell to the floor. Frank gave a triumphant smile.

"Invincible my—" he stopped and watched as the Knaaren got back up three seconds later and dusted himself off. "That's not possible..." Frank then knew that the bullets even from his rifle only temporarily stunned the Knaaren. He was going to have to do this using both speed and marksmanship. Frank fired again, stunning the Knaaren. Leaping down, he sped passed him and out of sight. The Knaaren got back up, noticing nothing. However, it was only a second after that he was knocked down again. This time, however, it was for good...

* * *

When Frank reached the chamber, he miraculously had ended up on the head of a giant statue of a bird with glowing blue eyes. He had a good vantage point of the entire room. He was just in time, too; a group of Knaaren came in, carrying a Heckler with them. Then, four more entered, carrying the throne with a small Knaaren wearing a crown on his head.

"You, Hoodlum, have been captured for ravaging our beautiful home!" the boy said.

_Beautiful?_ Frank thought. _Whatever..._

"You and your malformed race have angered our god, the almighty Leptus!" the boy continued. "For this, you shall be sacrificed!" All the Knaaren started chanting as the Heckler's head was placed on an altar.

_What can I do?_ Frank panicked. _I can't stun all of them!_ Then, a huge a beam of light fell upon the Knaaren.

Above even Frank, the robed man gave a knowing smile.

"_I knew it_." He turned around, walking away, muttering, "_This time, two more will follow_."

Frank, meanwhile, jumped down, grabbing the Heckler.

"Who are you?" he asked.

"My name's Frank and I'm your rescuer for the day," Frank said hurriedly. "We need to move!" Frank pulled the Heckler along, who mentioned that his name was Joe, as they sprinted off into the desert.

"Frank!" Begoniax's voice was a welcome sound for Frank. "I'm glad to see you are okay and you have our target, but I have bad news! André is in the Hoodlum force ahead!"

"What's the big boss doing out in the field?!" Frank asked.

"I don't know, but you better get to your exit mirror, because it's about to heat up real fast over there!" Frank and Joe were almost stopped by advancing Knaaren, but the tribal group was destroyed by an even larger beam.

"Where are those coming from?!" Joe asked.

"I wish I knew!" Frank responded. "Keep moving!" The exit mirror was just in sight, and Joe jumped through it. But then, Frank did the most cliché thing possible: he tripped. The Hoodlum company found him as he fell, and they were about to shoot when Frank heard a familiar high voice.

"Don't shoot!" André ordered. "We need him alive."

* * *

Frank was chained to two poles in a makeshift test chamber in the middle of the desert. The exit mirror was stupidly placed on the other side of the room, but it was just out of reach. André laughed evilly.

"So you're the leader of the little Resistance force!" he sneered. "I can't wait to watch you get blown to smithereens!"

"Lord André," a robed man stood in the corner. "Do not forget why we have detained this rogue. Do not jump the gun."

"I know what to do!" André yelled back. "Hoodlums! Hit this traitor with a red can!" Frank felt a red can hit him, and he felt power course through his veins.

"Activate it," the robed man ordered. Frank suddenly felt that power being painfully drained away. Frank felt weaker than ever before when the process had stopped.

"Is that enough?" André asked angrily. "I want to shoot him already!"

"Yes, I will be able to harness that energy for my plans," the robed man agreed.

"What are you doing?" Frank tried hard to stay conscious through the waves of pain behind his eyes.

"Since you're about to die, I'll tell you," André flew up close to Frank. "We've been watching you. We've seen how drastic your changes are when you touch these cans. Regular Hoodlums do not react to these in that manner. When we saw you fire those two gigantic lasers at the Fairy Council, we hatched a brilliant idea. We capture you and create a super laser by sapping your energy when you're in that state. Now, we have the power to destroy anything! And I will use that power during our attack on the Fairy Council."

"What?" Frank winced.

"The suns' are almost down," the robed man observed. "We must prepare for the invasion."

"Understood, my underling," André cackled. Frank thought the he saw the slightest movement of the robed man when he hard this sentence. "Hoodlums! Kill the traitor." The Hoodlums aimed, and then were blown to smithereens as the largest of lasers Frank had ever seen fell down on the chamber. Most of the Hoodlums were gone, but an army had appeared over a dune. Frank was still tied up, and knew that he wouldn't get out of this alone, when Larry, Jimmy, Joe, and Globox came through the mirror.

"Guys!" Frank said in surprise.

"You're lucky we found the place," Larry commented as he tossed a bomb out. Jimmy went to the air and began firing as Joe let out a barrage of cannon-fire. "If it weren't for Joe you'd be some black fuzz on the sand right now. Globox, untie him so we can get out of here." Globox walked over and untied Frank, who thanked him.

"Alright, we have the package, let's go!" Globx ran in first, followed by Larry, then Jimmy, then Joe, who squeezed off a few more shots before leaving, and finally, Frank.

* * *

"So that's their plan," Razoff grimaced. "I'm not surprised. As long as I've heard of him, André's always wanted the Heart of the World, so he's going to storm the Fairy Council and take it by force."

"Is there any way that we can stop the laser itself?" Begoniax asked.

"No, we have no idea where the laser is," Frank replied. "We only have one choice: We have to go to the Fairy Council and defeat the Hoodlums at any cost. It's all or nothing now."

"Alright," Begoniax decided. "I'm going."

"I'm in," Larry said.

"I'm going, too," Razoff added. "Whether we win or lose, after tonight the world will not need the Resistance anymore. Therefore, there is no need to watch this house...even though it pains me to say that."

"I don't want to miss this fight," Jimmy flew up.

"Time to pay back the Hoodlums!" Joe cracked his massive knuckles.

"Graargh!" Mort added, already piloting the Masterkraag.

"Alright then," Begoniax gestured to Frank. "Floor's yours."

"Guys," Frank began uncertainly. "One way or another tonight, the world will change. Tonight, we will either vanquish the Hoodlum threat completely, or we will be eliminated. But know this: no matter what happens, no matter _what_, we are still team, we still did great things for the world, and we're still friends. We're almost family. Tonight, we will not be going in there as a group of ex-Hoodlums. We will be going in there as a family, acting as one individual, for all the other denizens of this world. We will give them hope! We will give them a chance, not to survive, but to live! And we will give the Hoodlums what they deserve: a bullet through their black, winged skulls! Tonight we are not members of the Resistance—we _are_ the Resistance!" There was a chorus of "Yeah!" from Frank's teammates as Begoniax opened the last mirror. One by one, the Hoodlum Resistance stepped inside.


	7. The Final Mission

Mission 05

Intercept the Hoodlums

The Hoodlums are planning a final invasion of the Fairy Council in order to obtain the power of the Heart of the World. They are to reach their goal in 1 hour, and must be stopped. The entire Resistance must find the Hoodlum army and either A) Destroy them completely, B) push them back, or C) weaken them and retreat to the Fairy Council for a moment's rest before the inevitable battle. This is your final mission. Failure is not an option. Good luck.

Inside the mirror hall, the Resistance felt a sudden tremor. Frank turned and saw a section of the wall crumble and fall away, revealing nothing. Suddenly, more parts of the hall began to fall away, and the Resistance was suddenly being pulled toward different holes.

"How?!" Begoniax cried out. "The Hoodlums have somehow gotten into the Longest Shortcut, the source of the mirror halls, and disrupted the flow of energy! We have to—" she was cut off as she got sucked through a hole. Frank looked around to see Mort fly through the right wall. Jimmy was sucked into the ceiling. Larry fell into the left wall. Joe was sucked through a corner. Razoff tried to jump over a hole, but was instead sucked in. Frank suddenly felt a slight pull, and then he realized that he was falling. Everything went black.

25 minutes passed estimated arrival of Hoodlum army

The Fairy Council

When Frank awoke, the forest around him had gone from the peaceful serenity he remembered to a blaze of flora. He got up slowly, looking around. He realized that he was completely separated from the rest of the Resistance. Frank then questioned just how long he'd been passed out. Feeling panic slowly begin to take over him, Frank started running.

Mission 06

Regroup with the Resistance

Due to the disruption of the mirror halls, the Resistance has been separated from the each other and have been scattered around the forest. Quickly regroup with the other members.

Frank quickly moved passed blazing trees and charred mushrooms. He was surrounded by fire, and he didn't know what to do. The confidence he'd shown back at the mansion had ebbed away quickly, and now all Frank felt was fear. He passed by Hoodlums wandering around burning everything, and he didn't give a second thought. Right now he needed to find his way to the Fairy Council and the other members.

_Guys,_ he thought. _Please be alright!_ He continued running, never slowing down. There was fire everywhere, and also—that's when Frank noticed it. Beams. Everywhere. The beams of light he'd been seeing recently were firing everywhere now. They would just randomly come down. Frank quickly turned as one dropped in his path. He kept moving, dodging more of them. Suddenly, he was walking on air. Frank fell quickly, and landed on one of the islands in front of the Fairy Council.

"Frank!" Larry came up and pulled Frank to safety. "We thought that you were done for!" Frank nodded and looked at the chaos around him. Hoodlums were everywhere. The hundreds of Teensies Razoff had saved were trying their best to hold a barrier up to block the bombs and gunshots. The Resistance was out and about, trying to defeat the massive army. Larry pointed down at the assortment of cans.

"Pick your favorite."

Mission 07

Repel the Army

The Hoodlum army has arrived and put the Fairy Council under siege. The Teensies are currently holding a barrier, but their magic is slowly ebbing away. Destroy the army before the Teensies lose the force field.

Frank fired his right gun into the Hoodlums. For the first time, the bullet fizzled out about halfway through a row. Frank fired his left gun for only the second time in his life and watched with little satisfaction as it blew up only seven Hoodlums. Finally, he charged up both guns and fired the lasers. They shot clear through the army, but more Hoodlums came to join. Frank was getting tired already. The Hoodlums kept coming. There was no end to them. Mort crashed by, flattening tons of them, and yet the tide would not weaken. Joe had a power boost and was firing from two king-sized cannons on his shoulders, and was clearing out several meters, but the Hoodlums just repopulated. Jimmy was using a speed booster, and was zooming around firing, taking out Hoodlums in one shot, but it didn't help. Larry was using the electrical abilities to send lighting threw many Hoodlums at a time, but that didn't even slow them down. And all the while, bullets, bombs, and missiles pelted the Teensies' barrier. Frank stood up to fire again, and the he heard the shot. He looked up and saw Jimmy with his propeller badly damaged, spiral wildly and eventually land in the water. He didn't come back up. Everyone in the Resistance heard the shot, and they paid for it.

Suddenly, Joe's left cannon was hit from the front, it exploded, knocking his armor askew. He was instantly hit by a volley of gunfire until he finally fell to the ground, a smoldering hole clear through his chest.

The Masterkraag fell down hard to the side, afterwards. Frank watched in horror as he saw one of the first he'd rescued come crashing to the ground, their strongest weapon, the Masterkraag, and one of the best pilots ever known, hit the dirt. Frank saw the taught ropes swing down to the ground as Mort's body rolled into view—minus the head.

* * *

Larry felt himself weaken slightly and knew that he was back to normal. He pulled out his bombs and began throwing them, trying to dismiss the deaths of his comrades. He threw the bombs hard watching them explode. When he was surrounded, Larry rolled up his sleeves. Over a hundred bombs piled up on his arms.

"I'm sorry, Frank," Larry choked out. He lit one up.

* * *

Frank was being pushed back.

"Larry!" he called. "I could use some—" he saw a massive explosion where Larry had been standing. His mind already processed what had happened, but his body hadn't received the signal yet.

"_Larry_!"

* * *

"I win the jackpot!" André punched into the air. "Or in this case, the world-pot!" The robed man was smiling for his own reasons. It was just as he'd predicted. His plan was set in motion.

* * *

At the top of the Fairy Council, the Heart of the World lay active. The tower shook violently, but the Heart was not disturbed. Then, it began to grow brighter...

To be continued...


End file.
